Manchester City have reportedly named Antoine Semenyo as their replacement for Erling Haaland, having struggled to find a backup for the prolific striker since his arrival at the club.
They started out with Julian Alvarez, who, after two years in the role, outgrew his position and was sold to Atletico Madrid for a hefty profit. In the same summer they opted to let Alvarez leave, the Blues decided against going for another striker, instead choosing to cover for Haaland if necessary, using internal options.
That proved a disaster in the first half of the season, with Haaland forced to play virtually every minute of every match, and the marksman eventually burned out.
Marmoush experiment ends
In January of that season, City splashed the cash on Omar Marmoush, who did manage to hit the ground running. During a month-long absence for Haaland, Marmoush led the line and his goals helped secure City a spot in the Champions League.
However, last season, the Egyptian played fewer than 700 minutes in the Premier League after the Africa Cup of Nations, and injuries played their part. Regardless, Marmoush wanted out, and the ex-Eintracht Frankfurt star secured a move to Tottenham during the great City exodus this summer.
As a result, the Etihad Stadium outfit are back at square one.
In-house solution
However, The Independent claim that part of the reason why they were so content on letting Marmoush leave without signing a direct replacement (Iliman Ndiaye and Allan both arrived, but are primarily wide forwards) is that Enzo Maresca believes the solution lies in-house.
The report suggests City will look to use Antoine Semenyo as the deputy number-nine, should Haaland pick up an injury or require rotation. The winger arrived from Bournemouth in January and has mainly played on the flanks, but did feature centrally during a 3-0 victory over Crystal Palace in May.
It is part of the thinking behind replacing Marmoush with Ndiaye, who isn't a centre-forward, but can play in any position behind the striker. And in the event Haaland can't start for City, it should theoretically free up Semenyo to start there instead.
Gakpo move collapsed
That wasn't the original plan though, as they had initially earmarked Cody Gakpo, much more adept as a striker, as their No.1 choice this summer. A bid had been submitted to Liverpool, but the Reds weren't willing to sanction an exit for the Dutchman as they were unable to source a replacement and the move collapsed.
Ndiaye and Allan join the likes of Enzo Fernandez, Geronimo Rulli, Ayyoub Bouaddi, and Elliot Anderson as new additions to the City squad. The first assessment for this new-look City team is at home to Coventry City on Saturday.
